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Daolin
See: Government of Daolin, Military of Daolin The Empire of Daolin and the Realm of Daolin make up a nation along the western coast of [[Geography|'Araz']], a subject and member of the[[Grand Imperial Coalition| Grand Imperial Coalition]]. The capital is located in the Haikei, which served has the capital for the [[Daolese dynasties|'Yuhai Dynasty']] for centuries. Other major administrative centres include Jinsi, Laofeng and Shidong. The [[Suka faith|'Suka Faith']] is the biggest religion by a slim majority (45%), with the [[Hongyi faith|'Hongyi faith']] as the second-largest (40%). In sparsely-populated northeast region of Zhigan the population is mostly [[Faith of Illumination|'Saheric']]. Freedom of religion is guaranteed under the [[Bekheg|'Bekheg']] of the Grand Imperial Coalition. Daolese Realm The Daolese Realm describes a collection of dependencies of the Throne of Daolin. They are united in the person of the Emperor of Daolin but have different legislative systems and in some cases distinct armed forces to the Empire. They have been described as states-within-a-state. Emperor Honshe Region of Prosperity The Emperor Honshe Region of Prosperity (EHRP) is the most densely populated dependency of the Daolese throne, with just over 1 million citizens in the small area surrounding the Bay of Prosperity. It is run by the Court of Commerce and Trade, which is also the financial ministry for the empire as a whole, which elects a Court President to represent the EHRP. Tariffs and embargoes applied by the Daolese state to foreign chartered companies are suspended within the EHRP, as are titles of nobility as well as all rights of citizenship. The EHRP maintains its own armed forces, primarily for the purpose of border control, known as the Prosperous Army. The population of Imperial City, the EHRP's capital, is 70% non-Daolese, mostly populated by ethnically Ortusian (including CFRian and Régoroan), Sunghalan, Sahkoran, and Altin traders. The Emperor of Daolin rules the EHRP as the Guardian of Prosperity. Lianguo Mountain Lianguo Mountain is the southernmost of Daolin's islands, located in the Gulf of Haiyan roughly halfway between the Daolese city of Luzhong and the Damrin city of Bhurabdhi. It is theocratic in organisation and run by the Holy Executive, representatives of the 59 Suka Faith monasteries on the island, over whom the Emperor of Daolin rules as High Protector of the Blessed Mountain. Migration to and from the island is severely restricted to preserve the ascetic lifestyle of the monks and nuns, and nonbelievers are forbidden from entering the island. Monks and nuns live on separate sides of the island, which are connected only by a narrow causeway which is closely watched by religious authorities. The island is self-sufficient and receives shipment of supplies by the Daolese state only once a month. The Holy Executive of the island is in full communion with the Gyang Khaim of [[Khagira|'Khagira']]. Three Suns Islands The Three Suns Islands make up an archipelago in the Three Suns Sea between mainland Daolin's southwestern coast and Maiyon's southeastern coast. The southernmost of these islands form the semi-sovereign state of [[Tokohi|'Tokohi']], but the rest form the Daolese dependency known by as the Kingdom of Three Suns. The island is governed by a congress of representatives from each island elected by popular suffrage. The Emperor of Daolin rules the Three Suns Islands as the King of Three Suns. The Thrones Own Military Territories The Throne's Own Military Territories (TOMT) are extraterritorial sites controlled directly by the military of Daolin rather than the Imperial Courts. They include exclaves in the cities of Yamto (Maiyon), Fendian (Hamaji), Sebandar (Sebandar), and Kembalem (Sahkora). The Emperor of Daolin rules the TOMT in his capacity as Supreme Commander of the Forces of the Realm. Autonomous Province of Qunik The Autonomous Province of Qunik is unique among the throne's dependencies in that it is majority ethnically non-Daolese, with indigenous Quniken peoples making up 80% of the population. It is also unique in that it owed its primary allegiance not directly to the Daolese throne, but to the Prince of Jinsi, a legacy of its history as a colony not of the Haikei administration but of the Kingdom of Haikan when the two were separate. This was amended by the Imperial Courts in the decades after Haikan became an integral part of the Daolese Empire, such that the Emperor of Daolin and Prince of Jinsi rule the island jointly as the High Chiefs of the North. The primary legislature in Qunik is an ad hoc assembly of regional lords, who are primarily ethnically Daolese or who derive titles of lordship from Daolese appointment, in the capital city of Rhoudao. Kingdom of Yusole The Kingdom of Yusole is a populous colony on the southeastern coast of the continent of North Kaelon, religiously unique in the Daolese realm for its adherence to the Crowned Church of Merem. The Kingdom of Yusole is by far the most populous of the Daolese throne dependencies, with 10 million citizens. Originally Yusole was colonised by Meredon settlers who intermarried with the various native peoples, whose descendants then intermarried with later Daolese settlers creating a relatively homogeneous Meredon-Daolese-Native creole population. The official languages of the kingdom are Meredon and Daolese, but a pidgin of the two is the majority language. Its capital city, Puertal Iglaíso, ranks among the largest in the Daolese realm. History This is a simplified history of the dynasties that controlled Daolin through a cycle of unification and breaking apart, leaving out revolutionary states and short-lived nations and imperial lines such as the Gaoyu dynasty (clergy under the Gurus of the Suka faith),the Changan dynasty (popular among the Daolese peasants), the Luma dynasty (a scholarly state led by the Imperial Scholars). First Dynasty There is literary evidence for a Daolese state five thousand years ago, the Haojun Dynasty which was said to rule along a portion of the Huazhen river just east of the city of Lijong. With bronze weaponry and an organised army, they managed to stave off invasion from the horseback barbarians in the upper course of the river and the pirates based in Lijong. Second Dynasty The Haojun ruled for nine generations before they appointed minister Zhuan Li as general of their western army, but he conspired with the very pirates he was appointed to fight. He made peace with the pirates of Lijong in return for making Lijong the capital of his new state, and with the combined forces of the pirate fleet and the western army he overthrew the Haojun dynasty and established the new Li dynasty. They ruled for a hundred years, in which time they expanded down the coast as far as Hasara. They eventually made Jinsi their new capital. Tsung unification However their rule gave way to decentralisation due to shifting loyalties among the former pirates that formed their navy. The Li emperor had authority in law only, and in reality their territories were independent states varying from the size of a small country to one the size of only a single fort. A rival state based in Guoshi under the Tsung Family could therefore easily capture the Imperial Capital in Jinsi and declared Hong Tsung as King of All Daolin, the first recorded use of the name Daolin. All of the Li's former lands came under their nominal rule, and they instituted a series of reforms that strengthened the unity of the kingdom. They ruled for a thousand years and conquered territory as far north as Laofeng and as far east as Shidong. They are regarded as the first true Daolese emperors, despite taking only a kingly title in contrast to their predecessors. Fall of the Tsung The Tsung Kings kept Guoshi as their capital for their millennium of control over Daolin, but the glory of the capital began to become overshadowed by the trading cities along the Mailu. Over time the lords of the Mailu's cities began to resist paying taxes to their overlords in Guoshi and launching attacks against northern barbarians without royal decree. The Tsung monarch, Riyang Tsung, seized control of the port city of Luzhong from its governor in a display of power. In response the Mailu cities formed a union based in Zhaokon, which would become known as the Jiang Kingdom, and besieged Luzhong to display their own power. The ensuing war lasted thirty years and became known as the War of the Sea and River. Eventually the Jiang Kingdom took the city of Guoshi and the Tsung dynasty fell, however they could not hold the city and the former Tsung territories fell apart rather than coming under Jiang rule. All members of the Tsung family were rounded up and brought to Zhaokon. The Jiang Kingdom ruled most of what became the Hai region as well as further down the Mailu as far as Luzhong. To the Jiang's east, the Tsung stronghold of Shidong resisted Jiang invasions. It was originally a heavily fortified outpost of the Daolese kingdom, but came to establish hegemony over the surrounding area in its own right. With the last remnants of the Tsung army they carved out a kingdom to the east and north of Shidong, known as Hedao. Like the Jiang it claimed rule over all of Daolin, but in effect ruled only their smaller kingdom. It was governed by the Tsung-loyal Tianshi family, and became heavily industrialised due to the huge seams of iron and gas locked in the hills that covered their lands. They built an extensive mining network and delivered the natural gas through bamboo pipelines, and with systematic and organised warmongering they became one of the biggest powers in the region. The western coastal cities of Jinsi, Makun, and Lijong came to form a trading alliance known as Haikan. This accepted the rule of the Jiang kingdom but operated as a sovereign entity. They operated elaborate trade routes from Rhoudao on the faraway island of Qunik as far as Maiyon, Tokohi, and Sahkora. Jinsi quickly became one of the wealthiest cities in Daolin, before overtaking Guoshi as the most populous. The north of Daolin came under the rule of the Sengin clan, which claimed to descend from the both the Li dynasty and a powerful Beygul clan. They were warlike horse people, and from their capital at Laofeng formed the state of Ying-Ma. They rejected the Jiang's rule as weak and improper, and launched many raids into Jiang territory that severely weakened the kingdom's populace. Zhigan was just east of Ying-Ma and just north of Hedao, and despite never having been a part of the Tsung kingdom they had adopted much of their culture and spoke the Daolese language. However they followed Saherism and not the Suka faith or Hongyi faith. From their capital in Yuen they ruled a stable and peaceful nation. Throughout this time the land surrounding Guoshi, Yara and Hasara was under anarchic and unstable rule. Daobi passed between Jiang and Hedao rule multiple times as the two kingdoms consistently besieged it. Jiang - Ying-Ma war A major war broke out between the Jiang kingdom and Ying-Ma, in which Ying-Ma conquered land as far as the Haikei, although they did not capture the city itself. The Jiang kingdom at this time was ruled by the five co-kings of their respective cities, but this proved to be fatally inefficient in the war. The ruling dynasty of Zhaokon, the Meishu dynasty, were instated as the imperial dynasty of the renamed Meishu Empire. With more stable leadership they pushed the Ying-Ma back to their northern territories and even captured Laofeng for a time. Disgraced at their defeat, the Sengin clan was replaced by Gha-un clan from the Beygul tribes further north. The Gha-un recaptured Laofeng and a long rivalry between the Meishu and the Gha-un brewed. Under effective leadership the Meishu dynasty successfully constructed the Xinmai canal system that irrigated the Mailu basin and provided transport, as well as hindering Ying-Ma raids. The Meishu also successfully held Daobi against multiple Hedao sieges, and were overall popular and successful rulers. The Gha-un also improved the power of their sovereign, now crowned emperor rather than master. They warred with Zhigan and Meishu, and secured greater lands than any other Daolese state. The Rise of the Edun and the Yuhai However the Meishu supremacy began to fall behind that of the Yuhai, the traditional kings of the Haikei. The Yuhai had ruled longer than the Meishu and had amassed far more wealth, so the Meishu took a loan from the Yuhai treasury to construct the Xinmai canals. However due to the cost of warring with Ying-Ma, they could not repay the loan, and the Yuhai became annoyed. Realising how weak the Meishu must be, the Yuhai began mounting higher and higher taxes on the trade. They built a riverine navy to ensure the payment of these taxes, and even mandated that all ships who passed through their waters pledge loyalty to the Yuhai throne. In response to this challenging of their sovereignty, the Meishu sent their navy to attack the Haikei, but they were completely defeated by the Yuhai navy that lay in wait. They accomplished nothing but lost most of their fleet. The Yuhai called for a council of the five old royal dynasties of Jiang, to choose a new supreme from among them. However beforehand, the Yuhai were sure to earn the favour of the clergy of both the Hongyi and Suka faiths. The High Priest of Hongyi declared the Yuhai dynast to be the vessel of the Great Yellow Dragon, supreme guide and ruler of humanity. The Namlap of Khagira sent official envoys declaring the Yuhai dynasty to be the official line of Hushen, another guide of humanity but below the Namlap himself in the hierarchy. The Yuhais were unanimously chosen, even by the Meishu themselves. Under their rule, the new empire was renamed Lónghai and they built the walls that would become the Hai region. With the threat of the Ying-Ma to the north diminished by the wall, they sent their fleets out into the open ocean where they took the cities of Sebandar and Gaohra as colonies and so brought enormous wealth into the imperial treasury and brought a golden age to the Mailu river. The Sovereign Company of the Dragon was founded at this time. The native Gaohran populations brought in as workers on the Hai, as well as trading merchant populations, were then cast out of the Hai and into the unclaimed land surrounding the Greenwater River. These peoples, the Driakana and the Rhamara, formed the State of Rham ans split from imperial authority. In Ying-Ma similar shifts occurred, with the female population outnumbering the male following the long wars with Zhigan and Lónghai, as well as internal conflicts and wars with Sal-Toliq (an early form of the Beygir Empire). Women took up arms to replace their fathers and husbands on the battlefront, until even in battle they were the majority. They found the restrictions placed upon them by the ruling Gha-un clan to be unfair, and so threatened revolt. Fearing them, the Gha-un stepped down and an empress of the Edun clan took their place. Decadence Era The initial stages of the golden age in Lónghai from the Yuhai's colonies and the Sovereign Company of the Dragon was used to build institutions and ensure the inflow of wealth long into the future. Universities were built in the Haikei, satellite towns were established along the Mailu to fulfill the needs of the Haikei elite, the walls were expanded upon, and the Five Bends region of the Haikei was constructed. The Five Bends are considered a prime example of the architecture of this period. However with the death of the reigning Yuhai emperor when his heir was only a baby, control of the empire passed to the emperor's cousin who ruled the town of Daizu. Initially he was titled prince regent of Lónghai but later styled himself King of Daolin. This period was known for its excess and its obsession with foreignness. Lónghai imported art and architecture styles from all over the world, and threw lavish parties that slowly bankrupted the nation. This glamourous decay of all that had been built under Yuhai rule was known as the Decadence Era. Daizu rather than the Haikei became the centre of the high life in Lónghai, and historians later condemned the perceived loose sexual morals of the period (during which homosexuality and polygamy were very much accepted). Decadence outside of Daolin The Decadence era saw the high point in Daolese colonialism. Under the nominal rule of the emperor at Haikei (although in reality controlled by the King of Daizu), the Gaohra Office oversaw the administration of the colonies of Gaohra and Almina, the elite of which experienced the same kind of Decadence as back in Daolin. The Sebandar Office oversaw Sebandar and the Kembalem Islands.The Lónghai navy also saw the conquest and incorporation of the Haritik islands, which were placed under the direct and total control of the Sovereign Company of the dragon. The Empire of Mai Gianh was conquered and incorporated directly into Daolin itself as an integral part of the empire rather than as a colony. The Prince of Jinsi, ultimately loyal to the Yuhai administration and its Decadent regents, established settlements on the island of Qunik far to the north through which to funnel the islands valuable whale and ambergris resources. However these were his personal possessions rather than Daolin's, thus were not administered by central Daolese authorities. The Jinsi administration also was responsible for the subjugation of Tokohi, which though nominally independent came to be almost entirely controlled by Daolin at this time. Gonshu dynasty A movement named 'Gonshu' began in Hedao criticising the decadent and weak nobility as well as the imperial family, instead favouring the strict meritocracy found in the military. A man by the name of General Lushek led a coup of the Tianshi dynasty monarchy, using his status as a successful and respected commander during the Meishu-Hedao wars and in campaigns against Mai Gianh to the south. The newly founded Honourable State of Gonshu swept across Daolin, where military officials often betrayed their rulers under the promise of higher status under the Gonshu state. It secured all of the Tianshi dynasty's territories, as the imperial family itself fled to the Mai Gianhese capital of Hoang. Then it pushed west and conquered most of Lónghai's land barring that protected within the Hai region. In doing so they blocked contact between the Haikei and her colonies, effectively severing their global reach and cutting off the supply of wealth. For the duration of their 100 year existence they besieged the Hai, which at the time became known as the State of Hai rather than the Lónghai Empire. The Yuhai emperor reclaimed his throne at this time and began the Great Reform during which the lavishness of the Decadence Era was curtailed and the morals reformed. Among other things, the Imperial Harem was abolished and homosexuality made illegal. This ushered in the Era of Imperial Strength during which the emperor was once more the absolute authority in the land and the power of the nobility was limited. Upon general Lushek's death, rule of Gonshu was transferred to a council of his five general sons. He disowned his eldest son, who instead studied at Shidong's Shucun university, eventually executing him for criticism of the regime. The Gonshu state silenced and often executed members of the scholarly elite class that had once dominated the region, mandating that to participate in the state one must have first served in the military. To vote which descendants of Lushek would ascend to the council, to receive the protection of law, to marry, to own property, and any number of basic rights, one must first serve in the military and one's rights grow the higher one's rank. This excluded women, ethnic minorities, those of the scholarly class deemed unfit for service, and homosexuals. During this period there was increased movement of nobles into the Hai region, which directly caused the current class-based migration system in place. Fall of Gonshu Gonshu fell after 100 years due to economic stagnation and poor foreign relations. Haikan forged an alliance with Maiyon and Tokohi against Gonshu, which was pressing further and further west. As the Gonshu administration decried trade and other vices of the nobility, their state was funded only by military pillaging. After their war machine rolled to a halt, so too did their wealth and so great famines spread across their state and unrest toppled the ruling council. The rapid influx of wealth back into Lónghai triggered a golden age once more, however Sebandar had been conquered by Maiyon and later declared independence so was forever lost to them, and similarly Gaohra was taken by Hamaji. The Tianshi dynasty was then restored in the east. However the power vacuum left behind by the Gonshu triggered extreme tension. The idea of a single Daolin under a single Daolese emperor was cemented into Daolese culture. Civil war Period A period of roughly 100 years followed while the Edun recovered from wars with Beygul nomads and the Yuhai and Tianshi recovered from Gonshu occupation. Then the Daolese Imperial War broke out for supremacy over all of Daolin. The Yuhais of Lónghai, the Tianshi of Hedao, and the Edun of Ying-Ma all had a claim to the throne according to tradition (the Yuhai through the Yellow Dragon, the Tianshi due to blood ties to the old Tsung, and the Edun by virtue of their military prowess and vast lands). Haikan supported Lónghai, and Zhigan became a vassal of Hedao for the duration of the war. The Tianshi were became by far the most fearsome of the three, with well-structured military and access to strategic natural resources. They also had long history of conquest and a heavy industry to support warmongering. The Edun and the Yuhai were forced to unite against the growing power in the east, for the first time since the Tsung kingdom bringing the plains people and the river people together. With their combined strength and the expansion of Damri on the Tianshi's southern border, they managed to completely take the old Tianshi territories over the course of twenty years of warfare. When Emperor Honshe ascended to the Yuhai throne, he took Empress Biyen of the Edun as his second wife (a rank specially created to be above concubine and below his first wife) and pledged his unborn son's hand in marriage to the Edun successor. Beygul Period The rise of Beygir in the north quickly became an issue for the new united Daolin. With a swift army of horsemen descending over the battle-scarred northern regions, Daolin was in danger of destruction. The Edun (who retained lordship over the Northern provinces) were easily defeated, and soon Beygir's focused changed to the southern regions. They took the western cities and the old Tianshi lands, until eventually the armies of Yerga Morkral reached the gates of the Hai Region. However, he did not besiege it. Crown Prince Yushui was age eight at this time, and betrothed to Deisi who had become the Edun dynast at the sudden death of her mother. Seven years later Emperor Honshe died of an illness, and the Hai region surrendered to the Beygir Empire, now spanning most of Araz. Yushui was installed as the Emperor of Daolin under Beygul rule and formally married to Deisi. Reign of Yushui Yushui Yuhai is the incumbent monarch of Daolin, the first to serve the entirely of his reign under the Beygir Empire. His marriage to Deisi Edun is strained, as is his relationship with the public. Having no heirs and rarely appearing in public, and seemingly behaving servile towards Beygir, he is regarded as one of the nation's weakest monarchs, and the question of the future of the realm is on the mind of the public. His reign has also seen the opening of the Emperor Honshe Region of Prosperity, which invited foreign Chartered Companies to operate tax-free provided they register there for a minimum of 50 years, but most of the construction of Imperial City took place under his father's rule. Civil War See: Red Temple Crisis Following a slave revolt in the city of Daizu, rioting broke out in the streets of the Haikei seeking emancipation for the serf class elsewhere in the empire. Emperor Yushui Yuhai prohibited the military from suppressing the riots. They disobeyed and the Fourth Haikei Massacre ensued. The Emperor's personal guard were sent in to put an end to the insurrection, but just caused yet more violence as military official came to the realisation that their positions were irreconcilable with those of the emperor. This led to them founding New Gonshu, a reactionary military-led movement, in opposition to the empire. Meanwhile, caught in the crossfire of the fighting between New Gonshu and the old regime, the peasant class became increasingly radicalised and many joined Daolin-ren (Daolin of the People), also known as the Ren Movement. Here they were organised into a faction of their own and stormed the Imperial Palace in the Haikei, turning Emperor Yushui into a fugitive and capturing much of New Gonshu's weapons caches. Closely allied movements sprung up in other cities in Southern Daolin, leaving large swathes of the empire under anarcho-syndicalist peasant rule. With unclear central governance, the kingdoms of Tsung, Zhigan, Rham, and Taumal became autonomous, with Rham staying largely neutral in the conflict and Tsung being sympathetic to the Ren movement. Zhigan and Taumal opted to merely aid Beygir in reestablishing peace. Only in the island territories and in Haikan do the Yuhai loyalists remain in power. Three Provinces Daolin is currently divided into roughly three cultural zones, based on the kingdoms that once occupied them. The south was once the land controlled by the Yuhai Dynasty, and is richly fertile and known for its art and science. It is ruled from the Haikei (the Dragon's Heart) but its largest city is Jinsi (the Eye over the Sea). The north was once the land controlled by the Edun Dynasty, and is mostly poor grasslands. It is located on a rocky plateau with thin soils, and so has poor agriculture. As such it is mostly used for pasture, sustaining the region's large horse population. As a result the population is known for their frequent raids on their southern neighbours. It is ruled from Laofeng (the Ember of the North). The west was once ruled by the Tianshi Dynasty, and is mostly hills and semi-fertile plains. Within the hills lie huge veins of iron, coal, and other mineral wealth. They have long been a centre of industry and production, and had a highly organised military. It is ruled from Shidong (the City of Stone). Other regions are lumped into the three major ones. Haikan, the Tsung Kingdom, the Driakana people, and the Rhamara people are included as part of the south. The Beijia as part of the north. Zhigan and the Taum people as part of the west. "Water Cities" Daolin contains several so-called water cities in which natural bodies of water dominate the landscape of the city. The Haikei is the most famous, as the capital, located at the end of a rocky spur jutting into the confluence of two rivers. The city was founded in the defensible marshy land just at the base of the spur, where river deposition occurred, but has been drained and cut into by so many canals that river transport has entirely taken over from roads. Jinsi is the biggest, located on an island off of the west coast. It is dominated by a jagged bay around which the city is arranged. The core of the city is what is known as Fengang (the Great Pier) juts out into the bay and is the exclusive property of the merchant nobility, and as the site of the customs house is also where the vast majority of the city's revenue enters. It, and islands surrounding it, most notably in the form of a wall and ditch walling the peninsula from the mainland, is also the site of the island's main fortifications. Luzhong is one of Daolin's foremost ports, acting as the gateway between the rich Mailu River trade and the Haikan Coast, as well as historically with Daolin's overseas colonies. It is located across a series of fluvial islands in the Mailu delta, and is most notable for being constructed at two levels. When the river swells, the lower storey of the city is entirely flooded, and houses become islands. Thus lower floors are built with thick walls of rammed earth, and doors are on the second floor. Daizu is sometimes considered a water city, as the extensive waterworks built during the Decadence Era offer a similar impression to the other cities who are naturally dominated by water. However this position is controversial. The Cascades of Good Fortune that flow from the Upper Gardens of Daizu are a major reason for this. The cascades divert to form several shallow streams and ponds that house valuable imported fish. The Upper Gardens are home to several venues built directly on the top of the cascades so that the water flows from beneath the floors and they offer views of the sheer drop from the waterfall's peak. Most notorious is the Yingliu Fortune House, from which guests were known to cast coins from the wide terraces into the waterfall. Daolese Megaregions Triple Cities The Triple Cities of Zhaokon, Maikon, and the Haikei form an urban agglomeration at the point where the Zhaolu river joins the Mailu in the fertile plains at the Daolese heartland. The combined population is 7 million. Jinsi Strait Megaregion Jinsi is the largest single city in Daolin, and the second largest in the Grand Imperial Coalition, at 5 million people. Located on an island off the southwest coast of the Daolese mainland, it has thrived on trade between Maiyon, Tokohi, the Heijing River peoples ([[Driakana people|'Driakana']] and [[Rhamara people|'Rhamara']]), and the cities of both the Western and Southern Daolese seaboards (alongside the Mailu River cities and the Haikei). Its strong defensive position between tall hills and a defensible harbour has meant that it has not seen major loss of life my invasion and for centuries stood as the capital and core of the Kingdom of Haikan. A brief occupation by the Empire of Maiyon has meant that there is a large Maiyone minority in the city. The Jinsi Strait Megaregion encompasses the entirety of Jinsi Island and most of the Royal Cape, including the port cities of Gangdao, Yuguan, and Yunta, to give a combined population of 9 million. Mailu River Delta The Mailu River Delta is the densest populated region of Daolin, with a population of 9 million contained in the fluvial islands and their surroundings at the mouth of the Mailu River. It is centred on Luzhong, located immediately north of the actual river delta, with a population of 4.5 million. The low-lying land of the delta itself is intensely farmed and contains the Emperor Honshe Region of Prosperity '''as well as the cities of '''Tianzhi and Maijun. The delta region maintains a stranglehold on the interior of Daolin's maritime trade, but is also itself a major manufacturing centre, with many modern factories in Maijun, Luzhong, and Imperial City. Salt Rim The Salt Rim is the coastal region around the highly saline Eastern Sea, connected to the Gulf of Haiyin, with an urbanised populous ring pinned between the sea and the rocky Hedao Plateau. It is a major industrial base, with the rich mineral and natural gas deposits from the rocky Hedao Plateau constantly fed into the cities via ancient mountain passes and more recent railway lines and pipelines. Shidong is the region's cultural capital, with a population of 3 million. The region as a whole has a population of 6 million. Prince's Chain The Western Seaboard contains a string of trading ports collectively known as the Prince's Chain after the Prince of Jinsi, to whom they traditionally owed fealty. The largest cities in the Prince's Chain are Makun and Lijong, have populations of 3 million and 2 million respectively. The Prince's Chain cities are spread over a large area but have intensive mercantile links and so are considered a cohesive unit. Mailu Cities super-region The Mailu River Cities form the population backbone of Daolin, with 200 million people, the region encompassing the entirety of the Mailu River Delta megaregion alongside the Triple Cities '''megaregion, alongside other major urban centres such as '''Daizu and Nanmen. Traditionally under the Tsung Dynasty, the emperor granted the governorship of the Mailu River to eight families who ruled eight city-states as semi-sovereign entities subject directly to the emperor and not to his court. Each cultivated its own local symbolism, including flags, thrones, and seals, and they competed for commercial interests on the river with individual mercantile fleets. Eventually these mercantile fleets, under the command of the Yuhai Dynasty of the Triple Cities under whom the other Mailu River Cities rallied, turned against their Tsung masters and were instrumental in their downfall. The King of the Haikei was declared first among the seven other city-kings, and elevated to the rank of emperor following the sack of Guoshi and the execution of the Tsung emperor. Notable people * the Honshe Emperor * Yushui Yuhai Influences Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties of China, with the Decadence Era modeled on the latter years of the Western Roman Empire.